Tuesday, January 13, 2009

North Dome

On Saturday January 10th, Roger and I hiked North Dome Mt. in the Catskills. It was my second peak and Roger's 30th. North Dome is part of the West Kill-North Dome Wilderness area, and is 3610 ft. above elevation at the summit. We parked in the DEC lot off of Spruceton Rd. and bushwhacked (which was slightly obnoxious; a lot of twigs and branches whipping back into faces). We were going to continue on to Mt. Sherrill, but time restraints (having to be at work by 5:00 p.m.) cut the trip short.I was very excited about this trip, not only because I had been itching to go since Kaaterskill, but because I just purchased some new gear from Rock and Snow. I was torn between two boots but finally decided on La Sportiva's Halite GTX. I am very happy with them so far, but my feet were definitely hurting, not being broken in yet. My first time use of cramp-ons probably also added to the pain in my feet (Grivel G14 Cramp-O-Matic Binding rented from the shop). After the first hour, I was starting to get the hang of them (or my feet were going numb), and I am anxious to get out there and try them again. We had snowshoes on our packs, but didn't bother using them.I am really happy with the pants I purchased, Mountain Hardwear Castlewood. They are lightweight, and are a perfect waterproof layer over my spandex. I was very comfortable on bottom. They also fit very well (and according to someone, makes my butt look good). I got a rip in them with the cramp-ons(!) but Roger assured me that he can fix them with seamgrip. I was also wearing some Icebreaker baselayers, which I may be obsessed with (thanks to Mr. Ennis).Even though I felt like a zombie upon arriving at work, the snowfall that we got that night allowed me to leave early! It was a great day, spent with a great person :)

Photos

Driving on Rt. 42 (?)

Getting up there

Almost to the summit

"Next year's Christmas card"

Writing our names in the log in the canister

The snow was deep at the top

Coming back down

Legs were a bit sore

Drive home

Information taken from Catskill Trails 3rd Edition, Carol and David White

Blog Archive

Climb.

The Catskill 3500 club is open to all who frequent and love to hike in the Catskill Delta Region, located half an hour south of Albany. The Club was founded in 1962, and requires all members to climb 35 Catskill High Peaks, some repeated in the winter months from December to March.

My blog will chronicle a beginning and an end. While always a lover of outdoor activities, and most recently the Hudson Valley and New Paltz specifically, I am just beginning on my hiking journey, while my "guide" and boyfriend is finishing up his (at least the part where he becomes a member of the 3500 Club). Roger is a New York State certified Rock Climbing and Hiking Guide, and has thus far completed 29 peaks, 16 of which he completed during winter months. The last two recent peaks Roger completed, I had the pleasure of accompanying him, and I caught the bug, or "itch" of needing to push myself to the limit in beautiful and sometimes dangerous surroundings.

My next great endeavor will be to learn how to rope climb. But, we will have to wait till the Spring for that. Until then, bring on the snow!

Photographs used in blog are courtesy of Roger C. Ennis and Rachel M. Williams, on a Canon Powershot SX10 IS. Information and knowledge courtesy Roger.